Earth Moves At Couples Wedding

Updated : Aug 31, 2009

An Irish couple’s fairytale wedding made the earth move when half way through the ceremony a powerful tremor struck.

Ian and Monica Devine were holding their dream wedding in Monica's home town of Athina in Italy when a shudder measuring 3.9 on the Richter scale hit just as the couple were about to say ‘I do’ reports the Herlad.

The groom explained: “I was just starting into the vows, and I was just about to say ‘take you Monica' when the whole church started to rattle.

“The atmosphere changed and then you could really hear the rattle. It was an unbelievable sensation.”

Around half of the couple’s 150 guests ran outside the church after they saw the columns around the altar sway from side to side.

“They started swaying from left to right and a lot of people legged it straight out the door because about half the crowd knew what was going on,” said Ian.

“It's a day we will not forget very easily, it was full of drama.”

Ian, from Drogheda, Co Louth, and his fiancee had chosen the church because Monica’s parents were married there 50 years ago.

“You couldn’t have predicted it. We chose the date and the time, and even Monica was a few minutes late arriving then,” said Ian.

“If you were superstitious you’d wonder if there was a reason why it happened,” he joked.

The church had been closed for 10 years following an earthquake in 1986, which had also completely destroyed Monica's family home.

Even though the ceremony continued after the rattling had stopped, the atmosphere was still tense among the wedding party.

“I was afraid of what had happened. I was just on the edge of my seat through the rest of the thing – I couldn't relax,” Ian said.

“Monica tried to calm me. She smiled at me and said: ‘do you think it’s a sign?’

“We decided to continue, but at that stage a lot of people ... were in the pub trying to calm their nerves.”

Luckily, the reception took place in Villa Acquila, which is situated miles from the church and has never been hit by the earthquake.

Ian added: “Everyone relaxed, had a few drinks and started laughing about the whole thing.”